For me, 2011 was a year of huge transition. I began the year with a company that wasn’t performing well and I was busy on a very intensive programme of personal and professional development. Of course, this proved to be very costly and if it wasn’t for the support of my wife and family, I wouldn’t have achieved half as much.

Now that 2011 is coming to an end I can afford myself the time to review and reflect on where I am now:

• On paper, my business still made a loss but the loss was over 90% less than in the previous year. That’s a huge improvement as far as I am concerned and sets things up for me to move into profit in 2012.

• I re-launched my company during the summer of 2011. InnoChan Solutions was born out of the lessons learned since setting up my first company and a Mentoring programme I attended. By the way in case you are wondering, InnoChan is a melding of ‘Innovation’ and ‘Change’. Since the re-launch, I have seen a much greater interest in what I do even to the point that my Mentor wants to use my services in 2012 on a number of programmes.

• Since I first left the world of the employee in 2009, my main source of income has been in lecturing for a professional institute in Ireland on the topic of Supply Chain Management. A very encouraging fact with this was that I started with one subject in 2009. That increased to 4 in 2010 and I was offered another 2 for the current Academic year. Success after success.

• I mentioned that I had set myself a very intensive programme of development. I set myself the target of completing a Masters degree in Coaching & NLP by the end of 2011 (seven months ahead of the scheduled date). I achieved this.

• I completed a Higher Professional Skills course including a Diploma in Supervision (I set myself the target of getting the assignment for the diploma submitted before Christmas. I achieved this). I also completed trainer training in the iWAM EQ test and specialised training in micro-expression. It has really been a busy year.

All of this was achieved without external financing of any type (bank, government or state body) which proves that you can set up a business on your own without external support. It isn’t easy, but it is possible.

So what does 2012 hold for me?

The first 4 months will be very busy with lecturing and tutoring. I will also (hopefully) see some of the consultancy work that has been promised coming through. Add to that the fact that I will be running my very own Coach Training programme (starting in February 2012; check out the details on this site) and I have already secured some executive coaching/mentoring clients and 2012 is shaping up to be the best yet….

Ask me in 51 weeks…

P.S. Remember, in spite of the economic situation or government actions around the world, YOU can make 2012 a great year. Let’s enjoy the ride!!

It is the time of year when people are looking for that gift for someone special. Generally, our buying practices increase substantially around now in the rush up to Christmas. In the current climate we need to ensure that we maximise the value we get for our hard earned cash.

With the increase of on-line stores, we have access to a greater choice of sellers for our products and a greater range of prices. Our High Street has become global and entered our homes through the PC. The result is that people will tend to buy on-line if they see the product they want available for a lower price than, say a local store.

Unfortunately, many people fall into a trap; they fail to consider the TOTAL COST of OWNERSHIP (TCO). The TCO takes into consideration all costs that are not included in the base price of the product you seek, but which need to be paid before you can receive the product. It includes things like Delivery Charges, Insurance, Currency Costs, Fuel Costs, etc.

We see the price of a product in our local stores and then compare it with an online price for the same product. In many cases, the price online might be lower. This drives our buying decision. But we fail to consider (or include) the fact that the product we are buying is quoted in ‘$’ or ‘£’ or another currency and there is either a conversion charge or the cost of currency is more expensive (e.g. buying in Sterling (£) from Euro (€)). We forget that there is a delivery/postal/courier charge that will be added to the price of the product. This may also be affected by a currency cost. Depending on the product you are buying, there may be an additional requirement for insurance which will also be added to the cost of your product. Once you add all of these costs up, you may find that the local price is not as expensive as you first thought.

What about traveling to another country to buy your product. In Ireland there is the huge temptation to travel across the border to Northern Ireland where products are cheaper. However, ask yourself, would you have traveled to the North if you were not looking for the product. If your answer is no, then, you should add the cost of fuel to your product as it is not money you would have spent at that time or making that trip. Again, this affects the true price you would have paid.

I am not for a second suggesting that you HAVE TO buy what you want from local suppliers. I am merely asking that you consider ALL of the costs, before making a final decision on where you should make your purchase. Forgetting to consider the TCO can result in you paying more than you expect for products and deluding yourself into thinking you have picked up a bargain (until the credit card bill arrives, that is).

Enjoy shopping, shop safe and don’t forget the TCO…

Received a good write-up in SiliconRepublic today about the SME Business Summit happening next Tuesday 29^th in Kilkenny, the event is open for all business.

According to the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association (ISME) there are some 230,000 companies in Ireland employing less than 50 people. We might be small in size but together we contribute over €10 billion to the Exchequer annually and employ 900,000 people. Maybe EI should concentrate on SME growth, not just exporters. Due to increased competition and the inability of companies to compete on price,Innovation and creativity is the only way we can add value to SMEs through the products, processes and services you deliver to your customers.

The SME Business Summit on the 29^th November is designed to help you learn, network and market.

Innochan Solutions is collaborating  with The Performance Solution and the University of Derby Corporate to bring the MA in Applied Coaching to Ireland. 

The purpose of this programme is to provide students with the cognitive, critical and intellectual skills to become reflective coaching practitioners and to facilitate self-learning and development based on the work-based learning experiences offered by the Personal Development Plan, the practical assessments, logging of coaching hours and portfolio development within this award.

A specific aim of this programme is to provide a course of study that enables professional accreditation from the International Coach Federation. Ensuring that students are eligible for professional certified coach membership of the ICF is important if they are to meet the needs of the prospective employers and/or clients, especially those whose quality assurance processes require internationally professionally qualified and certificated coaches. It is a vital underpinning for the pan-European self-regulation of coaches which comes into play in September 2012.

This programme aims to provide students with the ability to develop a wide range of skills and competencies that will prepare them for a variety of career opportunities, including professional executive coaching in Ireland, and internationally. It will also provide a route for return to study and act as a foundation for those wishing to pursue a Coaching related Doctorate.

With this MA programme, not only will you finish the course with either a Post Graduate Certificate, Post Graduate Diploma or Masters Degree in Applied Coaching from the University of Derby, you will also earn Coaching and NLP qualifications through your studies along the way.

Course start date – February 2012, (Venue TBC around Ireland)

Topics/certifications included in the course:

Certificate in Professional Coaching Skills

Psychometric certificates:

• iWAM: Inventory for Work Attitudes and Motivation
• Extended DISC

Certificate Higher Professional Coaching Skills

NLP Practitioner Certificate

NLP Master Practitioner Certificate

Why not contact us to register your interest or, book your place or, for more information…

(Originally published in 2010 on my other website; www.secs.ie)

As we enter another period commonly known as the Festive Season, I thought it would be nice to re-publish the following blog. I believe this time of the year, and particularly in the current environment, we need to stop and take stock….Enjoy!

This blog is reproduced from http://www.theperformancesolution.com/2011/09/30/a-new-partnership/

Denis Coleman will be running Extended DISC training under our banner in Ireland, he will also be facilitating our MA programme (Masters in Applied Coaching) in due course. In addition The Performance Solution will be supporting Denis’ business; InnoChan Solutions, with the accreditation of Coaching courses. So with this in mind we have asked Denis to give us an insight into his journey in becoming a coach…..

Denis Coleman MSc, MIIPMM, MLBCAI, CMILT
Coach, Mentor & Behavioural Change Consultant

The last few years have seen a dramatic change in my work and in my outlook. In 2007, I was introduced to the world of Coaching when my employer (the last one I had) decided to contract an Executive Coach for his senior team (of which I was one). These sessions really opened my eyes. I realised that there was another way to deal with my workload. I was struck by the calmness and focus of the coach.

In 2008, I found myself in need of more coaching and, never one to do things by half, I decided to do a Coaching course rather than just attend a coach. It changed my life. In fact, it had such a dramatic effect that within a few months of obtaining my Diploma, I had left the role of employee and set up my own business. My focus was to bring my growing skills to people with a desire to help people just as I had been helped by coaching. I also wanted to pursue my desire and interest in educating and training others.

Since then, it has been a race to the bottom to gather more information and more qualifications. I started my MA in Coaching & NLP. That opened my eyes to just how much I didn’t actually know. The MA lead me to the world of Emotional Intelligence (EI) and Non-verbal Communication. I obtained special awards at Honours and Masters degree level in EI (including certification in the Bar-On and iWAM EI test methods). I also obtained certification in Extended DISC behavioural analysis and certification in Advanced Micro-expression. Phew!!

But it hasn’t ended there. I have continued with courses in iWAM trainer certification, Certification in Subtle Expression recognition, Higher Professional Skills certification in coaching, finishing the Masters and next year I will be completing the process with university accredited NLP Trainer certification.

Undertaking all this training while trying to set up a new company probably wasn’t the smartest thing to do and to be honest it has been hard to ‘share’ my focus between my own development plans and the development of my company.

Over the last few months, I decided to re-launch my business. Now that most of my courses are in the final stages, I believe I now have something worth selling. I have been strengthening myself, my knowledge and my service offering over the last few years and I am now ready to take them to market. My courses and experience have helped me to clarify who I am and what I do. My focus has become laser sharp, my resolve to succeed has become unbreakable. These changes, I believe, are mostly due to the level of training and development I have pursued since I first started the Coaching Diploma in 2008.

Watch out world…here I come!!